{"id":52761,"date":"1994-05-09T00:00:00","date_gmt":"1994-05-08T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994"},"modified":"2017-08-01T23:18:20","modified_gmt":"2017-08-01T17:48:20","slug":"c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","title":{"rendered":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994"},"content":{"rendered":"
Supreme Court of India<\/div>\n
C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994<\/div>\n
Equivalent citations: 1994 AIR 2759, \t\t 1994 SCC (4) 308<\/div>\n
Author: B S.P.<\/div>\n
Bench: Bharucha S.P. (J)<\/div>\n
           PETITIONER:\nC.I.T.\n\n\tVs.\n\nRESPONDENT:\nKAMALINI KHATAU\n\nDATE OF JUDGMENT09\/05\/1994\n\nBENCH:\nBHARUCHA S.P. (J)\nBENCH:\nBHARUCHA S.P. (J)\nVENKATACHALLIAH, M.N.(CJ)\nAGRAWAL, S.C. (J)\n\nCITATION:\n 1994 AIR 2759\t\t  1994 SCC  (4) 308\n JT 1994 (4)\t16\t  1994 SCALE  (2)976\n\n\nACT:\n\n\n\nHEADNOTE:\n\n\n\nJUDGMENT:\n<\/pre>\n
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
\nS.P.  BHARUCHA, J.- An interesting question arises in  these
\nappeals.   It is this : Has the Revenue an option to  assess
\nand   recover\ttax  from  either  the\t trustees   or\t the
\nbeneficiaries  of  a  discretionary trust  when\t the  income
\nthereof is distributed and received by the beneficiaries  in
\nthe  accounting year?  The appeals have been heard  together
\nand  may  be disposed of by a common  judgment,\t taking,  as
\nillustrative, the facts of the lead appeal (Civil Appeal No.
\n2145 of 1978, CIT, Gujarat, Ahmedabad v. Kamalini Khatau).<\/a>\n<\/p>\n
2.   The  relevant Assessment Year is 1969-70, the  previous
\nyear  being  the calendar year 1968.  The assessee  was\t the
\nbeneficiary  of 9 trusts.  In respect of three of these\t she
\nwas  the  sole beneficiary, and there is  no  dispute  about
\ntheir  income.\t In  regard to the  other  six\ttrusts,\t the
\nassessee  was one of the beneficiaries thereunder.  In\teach
\nof these six trust deeds the clause relevant for our purpose
\nread thus:\n<\/p>\n
311<\/span><\/p>\n
\t      “From  and  after the date hereof\t (i.e.,\t the
\n\t      date of the Trust Deed) and during the periods
\n\t      mentioned\t in  this clause, the  Trustees\t may
\n\t      either accumulate the net income of the  Trust
\n\t      or  at  their discretion pay the same  to\t the
\n\t      persons as mentioned therein or to any one  or
\n\t      more  of\tthem to the exclusion of  others  or
\n\t      other  of them for their, his or her  absolute
\n\t      use or benefit in such proportion and in\tsuch
\n\t      manner  as the Trustees may in their  absolute
\n\t      discretion think fit……”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
During\tthe accounting year relevant to the Assessment\tYear
\n1969-70 the assessee received the amounts set out hereafter.
\nThe amounts were received pursuant to the resolutions of the
\ntrustees  to distribute the same from out of the  income  of
\nthe six trusts for the accounting year.\n<\/p>\n
Name of the trust\t\t\t     Amount\n\t\t\t\t\t     Rs\n1. Geeta Mayour D. Trust No.\t\t     11600\n2. Ambalal Sarabhai D. Trust No.\t     46200\n3. Manorama Sarabhai (K. 8 D-Trust)\t     1000\n4. Saraladevi Sarabhai (G. 15) D. Trust\t     1400\n5. Manorama Sarabhai D. Trust No.\t     17300\n6. Anand Sarabhai (J-9) D. Trust\t     500\n\t\t\t\t\t   ---------\n\t\t\t\t\t     18,000\n\t\t\t\t\t     ------\n<\/pre>\n
3.The  assessee contended before the Income  Tax  Officer
\nthat the said amountof\tRs 18,000 was not liable to  be
\ntaxed in her hands.  The payment of incomeunder the  said
\nsix  trusts to any one or more of the beneficiaries  thereof
\ndepended  upon the discretion of the trustees;\taccordingly,
\nthe  shares of the beneficiaries thereof were  indeterminate
\nand  unknown.\tThe  income of the  trusts  was,  therefore,
\ntaxable\t only in the hands of the trustees  thereof,  having
\nregard\tto the provisions of Section 164 of the\t Income\t Tax
\nAct,  1961 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”).  The\t ITO
\nrejected  the  assessee’s contention and assessed  the\tsaid
\namount\tof  Rs 18,000 in her hands.  In doing so  he  relied
\nupon the provisions of Section 166 of the Act.\tThe assessee
\npreferred  an appeal.  The Appellate Assistant\tCommissioner
\naffirmed the view taken by the ITO.  The assessee  preferred
\na  second appeal before the Income Tax\tAppellate  Tribunal.
\nThe Tribunal held that no part of the income of the said six
\ntrusts was receivable on behalf of or for the benefit of any
\nof the beneficiaries thereof.  The provisions of Section 164
\nwere,  therefore,  attracted.\tThe  Tribunal  rejected\t the
\nRevenue’s  contention  that  Section  166  was\t applicable.
\nAccordingly, the Tribunal allowed the assessee’s appeal.  At
\nthe behest of the Revenue, the Tribunal referred to the High
\nCourt of Gujarat for its opinion the following question:\n<\/p>\n
\t      “Whether,\t  on   the   facts   and   in\t the
\n\t      circumstances  of\t the case,  various  amounts
\n\t      totalling\t  to  Rs  18,000  received  by\t the
\n\t      assessee\t out  of  the  income  of  the\t six
\n\t      discretionary trusts are liable to be taxed in
\n\t      the hands of the assessee?”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
312<\/span><\/p>\n
4.A Division Bench of the High Court referred the  matter
\nto  a  larger Bench, and it was heard by a  bench  of  three
\nlearned Judges.\t The order of the Tribunal was upheld by the
\nmajority  judgment, the third learned Judge  dissented.\t  We
\nshall have occasion to refer to the majority and  dissenting
\njudgments.\n<\/p>\n
5.It is convenient now to set out those provisions of the
\nAct  which  have a bearing on the issue that we\t are  called
\nupon to decide.\t Section 4 imposes the charge; it says\tthat
\nwhere  any  Central  Act enacts that  income  tax  shall  be
\ncharged\t for any assessment year at any rate, income tax  at
\nthat rate shall be charged for that year, in accordance with
\nand subject to the provisions of the Act, in respect of\t the
\ntotal income of the previous year of every person.   Section
\n5 defines the total income of a person resident in India  to
\ninclude all income from whatever source derived which-\n<\/p>\n
(a)is  received\t or is deemed to be received in\t India\tin
\nsuch year by or on behalf of such person; or\n<\/p>\n
(b)accrues  or arises or is deemed to accrue or\t arise\tto
\nhim in India during such year; or\n<\/p>\n
(c)  accrues  or  arises to him outside\t India\tduring\tsuch
\nyear:”\n<\/p>\n
Chapter\t XV  of the Act is entitled  “Liability\t in  Special
\nCases”.\t  Part\tB thereof sets out  the\t general  provisions
\napplicable to representative assessees.\t Section 160 defines
\na  representative  assessee for the purposes of the  Act  to
\nmean-\n<\/p>\n
\t      “(i)  in\trespect\t of the\t income\t of  a\tnon-
\n\t      resident\t specified  in\tsubsection  (1)\t  of
\n\t      Section  9,  the agent  of  the  non-resident,
\n\t      including a person who is treated as an  agent
\n\t      under Section 163;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      (ii)in  respect  of the income of\t a  minor,
\n\t      lunatic or idiot, the guardian or manager\t who
\n\t      is  entitled  to receive or is in\t receipt  of
\n\t      such  income on behalf of such minor,
\n\t      lunatic or idiot;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      (iii)in respect of income which the Court\t of
\n\t      Wards, the Administrator-General, the Official
\n\t      Trustee or any receiver or manager  (including
\n\t      any  person, whatever his designation, who  in
\n\t      fact  manages property on behalf\tof  another)
\n\t      appointed\t by or under any order of  a  court,
\n\t      receives or is entitled to receive, on  behalf
\n\t      or  for the benefit of any person, such  Court
\n\t      of   Wards,  Administrator-General,   Official
\n\t      Trustee,receiveror manager;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      (iv)in  respect  of income which\ta  trustee
\n\t      appointed under a trust declaredby a  duly
\n\t      executed\t instrument   in   writing   whether
\n\t      testamentary or otherwise [including any\twakf
\n\t      deed  which is valid under the Mussalman\tWakf
\n\t      Validating Act, 1913 (6 of 1913)], receives or
\n\t      is  entitled to receive on behalf or  for\t the
\n\t      benefit\tof  any\t person,  such\ttrustee\t  or
\n\t      trustees;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t       (v)in  respect  of income which\ta  trustee
\n\t      appointed\t under an oral trust receives or  is
\n\t      entitled\tto  receive  on behalf\tor  for\t the
\n\t      benefit\tof  any\t person,  such\ttrustee\t  or
\n\t      trustees.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      At the relevant time-Section 161 read thus:
\n\t      “Liability  of representative  assessee.-\t (1)
\n\t      Every representative assessee, as regards\t the
\n\t      income   in   respect  of\t which\t he   is   a
\n\t      representative
\n\t      313<\/span>
\n\t      assessee, shall be subject to the same duties,
\n\t      responsibilities\tand  liabilities as  if\t the
\n\t      income were income received by or accruing  to
\n\t      or in favour of him beneficially, and shall be
\n\t      liable  to  assessment  in  his  own  name  in
\n\t      respect\tof   that  income;  but\t  any\tsuch
\n\t      assessment shall be deemed to be made upon him
\n\t      in  his representative capacity only, and\t the
\n\t      tax  shall,  subject to the  other  provisions
\n\t      contained in this Chapter, be levied upon\t and
\n\t      recovered\t from him in like manner and to\t the
\n\t      same  extent as it would be leviable upon\t and
\n\t      recoverable  from\t the person  represented  by
\n\t      him.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t       *\t*\t *
\n\t      (2)Where\tany person is, in respect of  any
\n\t      income,  assessable under this Chapter in\t the
\n\t      capacity\tof  a  representative  assessee,  he
\n\t      shall  not,  in  respect of  that\t income,  be
\n\t      assessed\tunder  any other provision  of\tthis
\n\t      Act.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Section\t 162 entitles every representative assessee who,  as
\nsuch,  pays  any sum under the Act to recover  it  from\t the
\nperson\ton  whose behalf it is paid or to retain  an  amount
\nequal to the sum so paid out of moneys that are or may\tcome
\nto  him in his representative capacity.\t As it stood at\t the
\nrelevant time, Section 164 read thus:\n<\/p>\n
\t      “Charge  of tax where share  of  beneficiaries
\n\t      unknown.-\t (1)  Subject to the  provisions  of
\n\t      sub-sections (2) and (3), where any income  in
\n\t      respect  of  which the  persons  mentioned  in
\n\t      clauses  (iii) and (iv) of subsection  (1)  of
\n\t      Section  160  are\t liable\t as   representative
\n\t      assessees\t  or   any  part  thereof   is\t not
\n\t      specifically  receivable on behalf or for\t the
\n\t      benefit  of  any\tone  person  or\t where\t the
\n\t      individual  shares  of the  persons  on  whose
\n\t      behalf  or  for whose benefit such  income  or
\n\t      such part thereof is receivable (which persons
\n\t      are hereinafter in this section referred to as
\n\t      the   beneficiaries)  are\t  indeterminate\t  or
\n\t      unknown,\ttax  shall  be charged\tas  if\tsuch
\n\t      income  or  such part thereof were  the  total
\n\t      income of an association of persons, or  where
\n\t      such  income or such part thereof is  actually
\n\t      received by a beneficiary, then at the rate or
\n\t      rates applicable to the total income or  total
\n\t      world income of the beneficiary if such course
\n\t      would result in a benefit to the Revenue.”
\n\t      Section 166 read thus:\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      “Direct  assessment or recovery  not  barred.-
\n\t      Nothing  in  the foregoing  sections  in\tthis
\n\t      Chapter\tshall  prevent\teither\tthe   direct
\n\t      assessment  of the person on whose  behalf  or
\n\t      for  whose benefit income therein referred  to
\n\t      is  receivable,  or  the\trecovery  from\tsuch
\n\t      person  of the tax payable in respect of\tsuch
\n\t      income.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
6.We   may  now\t paraphrase,  and  thus\t emphasise,   the
\nprovisions  of\tChapter\t XV that are most  material  to\t our
\ndiscussion.   By  reason of Section 160\t trustees  appointed
\nunder  a trust deed or will who receive or are\tentitled  to
\nreceive\t on  behalf  or for the benefit of  any\t person\t any
\nincome\tare  representative  assessees in  respect  of\tsuch
\nincome.\t Under Section 161 every representative assessee is,
\nas  regards  the  income  in  respect  of  which  he  is   a
\nrepresentative\t assessee,  subject  to\t the  same   duties,
\nresponsibilities and
\n314<\/span>
\nliabilities  as\t if the income were income  received  by  or
\naccruing  to  or  in favour of him beneficially\t and  he  is
\nliable\tto  assessment in his own name in  respect  thereof.
\nSuch assessment, however, is deemed to be made upon him only
\nin  his representative capacity and tax can be\tlevied\tupon
\nand recovered from him in like manner and to the same extent
\nas it would be leviable upon and recoverable from the person
\nrepresented  by him.  A representative assessee may not,  in
\nsuch capacity and in respect of income received by him as  a
\nrepresentative assessee, be assessed under any provision  of
\nthe Act other than Chapter XV.\tSection 164 sets out how tax
\nis  to\tbe charged where the share of the  beneficiaries  is
\nunknown.   It applies when the persons mentioned in  clauses\n<\/p>\n
(iii) and (iv) of sub-section (1) of Section 160 are  liable
\nas representative assessees.  It, therefore, applies in\t the
\ncase  of  trustees who receive or are  entitled\t to  receive
\nincome\ton behalf or for the benefit of any  person.   Where
\nincome\tin  respect  of which the  trustees  are  liable  as
\nrepresentative assessees “is not specifically receivable  on
\nbehalf\tor for the benefit of any one person, or  where\t the
\nindividual  shares  of the persons on whose  behalf  or\t for
\nwhose benefit such income or such part thereof is receivable
\nare  indeterminate  or unknown” tax shall be charged  as  if
\nthat  income  were  the total income of\t an  association  of
\npersons.   Section  164 itself, therefore, sets out  what  a
\ndiscretionary  trust  for  the purposes of the\tAct  is.   A
\ndiscretionary\ttrust  is  a  trust  whose  income  is\t not
\nspecifically receivable on behalf or for the benefit of\t any
\none   person  or  wherein  the\tindividual  shares  of\t the
\nbeneficiaries are indeterminate or unknown.  The rate of tax
\npayable by trustees upon the income of a discretionary trust
\nis  that  which\t would\tbe  paid  upon\tsuch  income  by  an
\nassociation  of persons.  Where, however, such income  or  a
\npart  thereof  is actually received by\ta  beneficiary,\t tax
\nshall be charged thereon at the rate applicable to the total
\nincome\tof  the beneficiary if this  benefits  the  Revenue.
\nSection 166 states that nothing in Sections 160 to 166 shall
\nprevent the direct assessment of the person on whose  behalf
\nor   for  whose\t benefit  income  therein  referred  to\t  is
\nreceivable  or\tthe  recovery from such person\tof  the\t tax
\npayable in respect thereof.\n<\/p>\n
7.Some analogous provisions of the Indian Income Tax Act,
\n1922,  may also be noted.  Section 40 stated that where\t the
\nguardian or trustee of any person being a minor, lunatic  or
\nidiot was entitled to receive on behalf of such\t beneficiary
\nor  was\t in  receipt on behalf of such\tbeneficiary  of\t any
\nincome,\t profits  or gains chargeable under  that  Act,\t tax
\nwould  be levied upon and recoverable from such guardian  or
\ntrustee in like manner and to the same amount as it would be
\nleviable  upon and recoverable from any such beneficiary  if
\nof  full  age or sound mind and in direct  receipt  of\tsuch
\nincome, profits or gains.  More relevant are the  provisions
\nof Section 41, which read thus:\n<\/p>\n
\t      ”\t Courts of Wards, etc.- (1) In the  case  of
\n\t      income, profits or gains chargeable under this
\n\t      Act which the Courts of Wards, the Administra-
\n\t      tors-General,  the  Official Trustees  or\t any
\n\t      receiver\tor  manager  (including\t any  person
\n\t      whatever\this designation who in fact  manages
\n\t      property on behalf of another) appointed by or
\n\t      under any order of a Court, or any
\n\t      315<\/span>
\n\t      trustee  or trustees [appointed under a  trust
\n\t      declared\tby  a duly  executed  instrument  in
\n\t      writing  whether\ttestamentary  or  otherwise]
\n\t      (including  the trustee or trustees under\t any
\n\t      Wakf  deed which is valid under the  Mussalman
\n\t      Wakf  Validating Act, 1913), are\tentitled  to
\n\t      receive  on  behalf of any  person],  the\t tax
\n\t      shall be levied upon and recoverable from such
\n\t      Court    of   Wards,    Administrator-General,
\n\t      Official\tTrustee,  receiver  or\tmanager\t [or
\n\t      trustee  or trustees], in the like manner\t and
\n\t      to  the  same amount as it would\tbe  leviable
\n\t      upon and recoverable from [the person on whose
\n\t      behalf  such  income,  profits  or  gains\t are
\n\t      receivable],  and all the provisions  of\tthis
\n\t      Act shall apply accordingly:\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      Provided\tthat where any such income,  profits
\n\t      and   gains  or  any  part  thereof  are\t not
\n\t      specifically  receivable on behalf of any\t one
\n\t      person, or where the individual shares of\t the
\n\t      persons  on whose behalf they  are  receivable
\n\t      are indeterminate or unknown, the tax shall be
\n\t      levied  and recoverable at the  maximum  rate,
\n\t      but, where such persons have no other personal
\n\t      income  chargeable under this Act and none  of
\n\t      them is an artificial juridical person, as  if
\n\t      such  income,  profits or gains or  such\tpart
\n\t      thereof\twere   the  total   income   of\t  an
\n\t      association of persons:\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      Provided\tfurther that when part only  of\t the
\n\t      income,  profits\tand  gains  of\ta  trust  is
\n\t      chargeable  under\t this Act,  that  proportion
\n\t      only   of\t the  income,  profits\t and   gains
\n\t      receivable  by  a beneficiary from  the  trust
\n\t      which  the  part so chargeable  bears  to\t the
\n\t      whole  income, profits and gains of the  trust
\n\t      shall be deemed to have been derived from that
\n\t      part.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\t      (2)Nothing  contained  in\t sub-section  (1)
\n\t      shall prevent either the direct assessment  of
\n\t      the person on whose behalf income, profits  or
\n\t      gains  therein referred to are receivable,  or
\n\t      the  recovery  from  such person\tof  the\t tax
\n\t      payable in respect of such income, profits  or
\n\t      gains.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
8.We  may now revert to the High Court’s judgments.   The
\nmajority  judgment laid emphasis upon the word\t“charge”  in
\nthe marginal note to Section 164 and upon the word “charged”
\nin the body thereof.  The charge created by Section 4 was in
\naccordance with and subject to the provisions of the Act and
\nit  was held that, therefore, the charge in the case of\t the
\nspecial class of representative assessees created by Section
\n164 prevailed over the charge created by Section 4. In cases
\nfalling\t under\tSection\t 164 one had to\t look  only  to\t its
\nprovisions  rather  than to the provisions of  Section\t161.
\nThe word “receivable” in the context in which it occurred in
\nSection\t 164 indicated that it was the trust deed  that\t one
\nhad to look at and not the actual exercise of discretion  by
\nthe  trustees  in  the\tcourse of  the\tyear.\tSection\t 166
\npermitted  the direct assessment of the beneficiary when  it
\ncould possibly be done under the provisions of Sections\t 160
\nto 169 in Chapter XV.  What was crucial was not Section\t 166
\nbut  Section 164; because if, under Section 164, it was\t not
\nopen  to the Revenue to proceed against the beneficiary,  it
\nwas not open to the Revenue to treat the income of the trust
\nexcept as the income of a fictional association of  persons.
\nThe  last portion of Section 164 only gave an option  as  to
\nrates at which the tax was to be levied.  The interest of  a
\nbeneficiary under a discretionary trust was merely his right
\nto be considered
\n316<\/span>
\nby the trustees.  Because of the impossibility to deal\twith
\nincome\tin such cases the legislature had made\tthe  special
\nprovision  of Section 164.  The question  was,\taccordingly,
\nanswered by the majority judgment in the negative, that\t is,
\nin favour of the `assessee and against the Revenue.\n<\/p>\n
9.The dissenting judgment noted that tax liability  arose
\non the last date of an accounting year.\t It was,  therefore,
\npermissible to tax a beneficiary under a discretionary trust
\nprovided  that,\t upon exercise of the  discretion  conferred
\nupon the trustees under the trust deed before the last\tdate
\nof  the\t accounting year in which the income  was  received,
\nthey  had indicated that a part or the whole thereof was  of
\nthe   beneficial   ownership   of  one\tor   more   of\t the
\nbeneficiaries.\t The  money  in question,  so  soon  as\t the
\ndiscretion   was  exercised  in\t favour\t of  one   or\tmore
\nbeneficiaries,\twas receivable by them in fulfilment of\t the
\ndisposition  made  by the trust deed and what was  merely  a
\nright to be considered as a potential recipient of a benefit
\nbecame\ta vested right to receive the income or part  of  it
\naccording to the exercise of the discretion by the trustees.
\nThe  money  in\tquestion,  as soon  as\tthe  discretion\t was
\nexercised,   was   held\t  in  trust   for   the\t  respective
\nbeneficiaries and they became entitled to receive the  same.
\nIn other words, before the accounting year ended and the tax
\nliability arose the beneficiaries were the persons in whom a
\nvested right to receive and control the income arose.  There
\nwas.  therefore, no reason why, on principle, the  resulting
\npayment\t upon the exercise of discretion could not be  taxed
\noptionally  in the hands of the beneficiaries for they\twere
\nthe  persons  in actual receipt and control of\tthe  income.
\nSection 164 was Do more than an enabling section similar  to
\nSection\t 161(1)\t and  nothing more or  less  could  be\tread
\ntherein.   In  cases covered by Section 161 (1)\t the  option
\ncould be exercised on the strength of the trust deed  itself
\nsince  the income in such cases was specifically  receivable
\nby the trustees on behalf of or for the benefit of a  single
\nbeneficiary  or,  where there were more\t beneficiaries\tthan
\none,  the  individual  shares  of  the\tbeneficiaries\twere
\ndeterminate  and known.\t So far as cases covered by  Section
\n164  were  concerned,  the exercise  of\t the  option  became
\npossible  only\tupon the discretionary\ttrustees  allocating
\namongst the beneficiaries the whole or part of the income in
\nthe exercise of their discretion during the accounting\tyear
\nfor,  upon  the\t happening of such  event,  the\t income\t was
\nreceived   by  the  beneficiaries  in  fulfilment   of\t the
\ndisposition  made by the trust deed and such  income  became
\nchargeable to tax in the hands of the beneficiaries in\tview
\nof  the\t provisions  of Sections 4 and 5  of  the  Act.\t  As
\nregards\t the use of the word ,charge’ in the  marginal\tnote
\nand the body of Section 164 in contradistinction to the\t use
\nof  the\t expression  “levied upon  and\trecovered  from”  in
\nSection 161, the difference in the choice of language was of
\nno  significance.  The word ‘charged’ in Section  164  could
\nonly  be  construed  as conveying the  meaning\t“levied\t and
\nrecovered”.   Section 166 was attracted in cases covered  by
\nSection 164 where the beneficiaries had received the  income
\nor  part thereof pursuant to the exercise of  discretion  by
\nthe  trustees of a discretionary trust in the course of\t the
\nsame   accounting  year.   Even\t assuming  that\t  the\tword
\n‘receivable’ in Section 164 had to be interpreted to
\n317<\/span>
\nmean  receivable  under the trust deed and that it  was\t the
\ntrust deed that one had to look at, this interpretation\t did
\nnot  come in the way of holding that   even a  discretionary
\nbeneficiary,  pursuant to the exercise of discretion in\t his
\nfavour and upon his receiving his share of the income in the
\ncourse\tof the accounting year in which it was\treceived  by
\nthe trustees, was liable to be assessed and taxed in respect
\nthereof.   The dissenting judgment, therefore, answered\t the
\nquestion that was posed in the affirmative, that is to\tsay,
\nin favour of the Revenue and against the assessee.\n<\/p>\n
10.The\tlearned Solicitor General appearing for the  Revenue
\nsubmitted  that\t when  income was received on  behalf  of  a
\nbeneficiary  of a trust, the beneficiary could\tbe  directly
\nassessed under Section 5. The Act did not intend to levy tax
\nexcept\tin  relation  to  the  person  who  received  income
\nbeneficially.  Sections 160 to 166 were enacted to take care
\nof a situation where the recipient of the income was not the
\nperson entitled to the beneficial enjoyment thereof and they
\ncreated\t the concept of a “representative assessee” as\talso
\nthe  fiction that he received the income  beneficially.\t  At
\nthe  same  time, it was made clear that\t the  representative
\nassessee’s liability did not extend beyond the limit of\t the
\ndirect assessee, implicitly recognising the liability of the
\ndirect assessee to be assessed.\t When the beneficiaries of a
\ntrust\tor  their  shares  therein  were  indeterminate\t  or
\nunknown,  the  first  part of Section 161  applied  for\t the
\nliability  of  the trustee of a discretionary  trust  flowed
\nfrom  Section 161.  The second part of Section 161,  namely,
\nlevy and recovery in like manner and to the same extent, was
\ninherently  inapplicable  to the situation and it  was\there
\nthat Section 164 made special provision as to the status  in
\nwhich  and  the rate at which the tax was to be\t levied\t and
\nrecovered  from\t the trustee.  No judgment stated  that\t the
\nincome of a trust must only be assessed in the hands of\t the
\ntrustee.  What was stated was that where the assessment\t was
\nmade  in the hands of the trustee, it could only be made  in
\nterms  of  the\tprovisions of Sections 160 to  166,  or\t the
\nequivalent provisions of Sections 40 and 41 of the 1922 Act.
\nEven  where  the  trustee was taxed it\twas  the  beneficial
\ninterest which was taxed.  There was and could be no dispute
\nthat  in  the  case of a specific trust\t the  Revenue  could
\nassess and recover the tax from the beneficiary even  though
\nthe  trustee was the first recipient of the income  and\t had
\nlegal title thereto.  On a parity of reasoning, there was no
\nimpediment  to\ttaxing the beneficiary\tof  a  discretionary
\ntrust  when  he had received the income\t in  the  accounting
\nyear.  Section 161 made the representative assessee  subject
\nto  the same duties,responsibilities and liabilities  as  if
\nthe  income  was  received  by\thim  beneficially.   It\t was
\nnecessary  to create this fiction because it was  never\t the
\nobject\tor intention of the Act to charge tax  upon  anybody
\nother  than  the  beneficial owner of  the  income.   Having
\ncreated\t the fiction of beneficial receipt,  protection\t was
\ngiven  to the representative assessee by providing that\t the
\ntax in his hands would be levied upon and recovered from him
\nin  the\t like manner and to the same extent as it  would  be
\nleviable upon and recoverable from the person represented by
\nhim.  It was implicit in this that the tax could
\n318<\/span>
\nbe leviable upon and recoverable from the person represented
\nby the representative assessee.\n<\/p>\n
11.In the submission of Mr Salve, learned counsel for  the
\nassessee,  Section 161 dealt generally with the taxation  of
\nall  representative assessees, including  trustees,  whereas
\nSection\t  164\twas  a\tspecial\t provision   applicable\t  to
\ndiscretionary trusts and was a complete code which laid down
\nnot only the mode and manner of taxation but also prescribed
\nthe  basis  and extent of the charge of tax.   Section\t164,
\ntherefore, excluded the application of Section 161  wherever
\nit  became  applicable on account of the  existence  of\t the
\ncircumstances\ttherein\t  mentioned.   The   assessment\t  of
\nbeneficiaries  even  where  their shares  were\tunknown\t was
\nunworkable   because  there  could  not\t be   a\t  fragmented
\nassessment,  partly  on\t the  trustees\tand  partly  on\t the
\nbeneficiaries.\t The tax was on the accrual of\tincome\tupon
\nthe person who was in direct control thereof.  The point  at
\nwhich  the income was levied was when the income accrued  to
\nthe trustees.  The distribution of income did not clothe the
\nsum received by the beneficiary with the character of income
\nwhich  could  be  taxed\t once again  on\t its  receipt.\t The
\nargument  that\tthere  were two limbs  to  Section  161\t was
\nmisconceived  because  the trustees were liable\t to  tax  as
\nowners\tand  a beneficial interest in the income was  not  a
\ncondition essential to make the income taxable.\t Any  person
\nin  effectual control of income could be taxed thereon,\t the
\nsubsequent deployment being irrelevant.\t It was\t conceivable
\nthat  in  certain  circumstances, e.g., in  the\t case  of  a
\nspecific trust in which a specific beneficiary was in direct
\nreceipt\t or  control of specified  income,  the\t beneficiary
\ncould  be directly assessed on general principles.   Section
\n166 only clarified that if, generally, in law a\t beneficiary
\ncould be assessed to tax then the provisions of Sections 160
\nto 165 would not by implication bar direct assessment.\n<\/p>\n
12.There  are three judgments of this Court which  have\t a
\nbearing\t on  these  appeals.  In C.R.  Nagappa\tv.  CIT\t the<\/a>
\nassessee had executed several trust deeds settling  specific
\nproperties  for\t the benefit of his minor  children.   Under
\neach deed he had settled certain properties for the  benefit
\nof a named minor child and had vested the properties in four
\ntrustees,  namely,  himself,  his two wives  and  a  married
\ndaughter.   Under each of the trust deeds a portion  of\t the
\nincome was to be utilised immediately for the benefit of the
\nbeneficiary and the balance was to be accumulated and handed
\nover  to  the  beneficiary  upon  a  stated  date.   It\t was
\ncontended  on  behalf of the appellant that the\t Income\t Tax
\nOfficer was bound to assess the income under each trust deed
\nseparately  in the hands of the trustees  as  representative
\nassessees and, by reason of Section 161(2), was\t incompetent
\nto assess the income in the hands of either the appellant or
\nthe beneficiaries.  This Court held that it was implicit  in
\nthe  terms  of Section 161(1) that the\tIncome\tTax  Officer
\ncould assess a representative assessee as regards the income
\nin respect of which he was a representative assessee, but he
\nwas  not  bound\t to  do so.   He  could\t assess\t either\t the
\nrepresentative assessee or the person represented by him,
\n1  (1969) 73 ITR 626: AIR 1969 SC 888 : (1969) 1 SCR 979
\n319<\/span>
\nand  this  was\texpressly so enacted in\t Section  166.\t The
\nIncome\tTax Officer could assess the person  represented  in
\nrespect\t of  the  income  of  the  trust  property  and\t the
\nappropriate   provisions   of  the  Act\t relating   to\t the
\ncomputation of his total income and the manner in which\t the
\nincome\twas to be computed would apply to  such\t assessment.
\nThe Income Tax Officer could also assess the  representative
\nassessee  in  respect  of that income and  limited  to\tthat
\nextent\tand  tax  could be levied  and\trecovered  from\t the
\nrepresentative\tassessee  to  the  same\t extent\t as  it\t was
\nleviable upon and recoverable from the person represented by
\nhim.  The contention raised by the appellant’s counsel\tthat
\nsince the trustees were assessable in respect of the  income
\nof the beneficiaries under Section 161(1), that income could
\nnot by virtue of Section 161(2) be assessed in the hands  of
\nthe beneficiaries was contrary to the plain terms of Section\n<\/p>\n
166.  Section 161(2) did not purport to deny the Income\t Tax
\nOfficer\t the option of assessing the income in the hands  of
\nthe  person represented by the representative assessee.\t  It
\nmerely\tenacted\t that  when a  representative  assessee\t was
\nassessed  to  tax  in  the exercise of\tthe  option  of\t the
\nRevenue,  he could be assessed only under the provisions  of
\nChapter XV and under no other provisions of the Act.  It was
\npointed\t out that Section 161(2) had been enacted to  remove
\nthe conflict of judicial opinion which had arisen in  regard
\nto  the\t interpretation\t of  the  analogous  provisions\t  of
\nSections  40  and 41 of the 1922 Act.  The  observations  of
\nChagla, C.J., of the Bombay High Court in the case of CIT v.
\nBalwantrai  Jethalal Vaidya2 which dealt with the scheme  of
\nSection 41 of the 1922 Act, were approved.  They read:\n<\/p>\n
\t      “…  it\tis  clear  that\t every\tcase  of  an
\n\t      assessment  against a trustee must fall  under
\n\t      Section  4  1, and it is equally\tclear  that,
\n\t      even  though a trustee is being assessed,\t the
\n\t      assessment  must\tproceed in the\tmanner\tlaid
\n\t      down in Chapter III…. Section 41 only  comes
\n\t      into  play after the income has been  computed
\n\t      in  accordance  with Chapter  111.   Then\t the
\n\t      question of payment of tax arises and it is at
\n\t      that stage that Section 41 issues a mandate to
\n\t      the  Taxing  Department that,  when  they\t are
\n\t      dealing  with  the income of a  trustee,\tthey
\n\t      must levy the tax and recover it in the manner
\n\t      laid down in Section 41.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The  same  considerations applied to the  interpretation  of
\nSection\t 161(2).   It merely enacted that  when\t income\t was
\nassessed  in the hands of a representative assessee  in\t his
\nown name the assessment would be deemed to be made upon\t him
\nin the representative capacity only and tax could be  levied
\nand recovered in the manner provided in Section 161(1).\n<\/p>\n
13.In  Jyotendrasinhji\tv. S.I. Tripathi3 a Bench  of  two
\nlearned\t  Judges  of  this  Court  founded  their   judgment
\nprincipally upon Nagappa case’ and concluded that by  virtue
\nof Section 166 the Revenue had an option in the case of\t the
\nincome of a discretionary trust either to make an assessment
\nupon  the  trustees  or\t to  make  an  assessment  upon\t the
\nbeneficiaries.\n<\/p>\n
2 (1958) 34 ITR 187 (Bom)
\n3 1993 Supp (3) SCC 389 :(1993) 201 ITR 611
\n320<\/span>\n<\/p>\n
14.In CWT v. Trustees of H.E.H. Nizam’s Family\t(Remainder
\nWealth) Trust4 this Court was dealing with provisions of the
\nWealth\tTax Act, 1957, analogous to Sections 160 to  166  of
\nthe Act and Sections 40 and 41 of the 1922 Act.\t Section  21
\n(1) of the Wealth Tax Act stated that in the case of  assets
\nchargeable to tax thereunder which were held, inter alia, by
\na trustee appointed under a trust deed, wealth tax “shall be
\nleviable  upon and recoverable from the\t trustee … in\t the
\nlike  manner and to the same extent as it would be  leviable
\nupon  and  recoverable from the person on whose\t behalf\t the
\nassets\tare held…… Sub-section (2) stated  that  nothing
\ncontained in sub-section (1) would prevent either the direct
\nassessment  of\tthe person on whose behalf the\tassets\twere
\nheld  or  recovery from him of the tax\tpayable\t in  respect
\nthereof.   This\t was  a\t case in which\tthe  late  Nizam  of
\nHyderabad  had created several trusts.\tFor the purposes  of
\nthe  judgment it was sufficient that the provisions of\twhat
\nwas  called  “the family trust” were referred  to.   By\t the
\ntrust deed the Nizam had transferred a corpus of rupees nine
\ncrores\tto  the trustees to be nationally divided  into\t 175
\nequal  units,  of which 166 1\/2 units were allotted  to\t the
\nrelations mentioned in the second schedule to the trust deed
\nin  the\t manner\t specified  therein,  the  number  of  units
\nallocated  to  each  relation being  mentioned\tthere.\t The
\nWealth\tTax Officer assessed only the value of 13  units  in
\nthe  hands of the trustees and the value of the other  units
\nin  the\t hands\tof the\trepresentative\tbeneficiaries.\t The
\nmatter reached the High Court upon a reference by the Income
\nTax  Appellate\tTribunal  and thereafter  this\tCourt.\t The
\nquestion that was considered was whether assessment could be
\nmade on the trustees under Section 3 apart from and  without
\nreference to Section 21.  The answer was seen to depend upon
\nthe  true  meaning and effect of Sections 3 and 21  and\t the
\ninterrelation  between\tthem.  Section 3  was  the  charging
\nsection\t and it levied the charge of wealth tax on  the\t net
\nwealth of the assessee on the relevant valuation date.\t Net
\nwealth was defined in Section 2(m) to mean-\n<\/p>\n
\t      “….the\tamount by which the aggregate  value
\n\t      computed in accordance with the provisions  of
\n\t      this Act of all the assets, wherever  located,
\n\t      belonging\t to  the assessee on  the  valuation
\n\t      date, including assets required to be included
\n\t      in  his net wealth as on date under this\tAct,
\n\t      is in excess of the aggregate value of all the
\n\t      debts  owed by the assessee on  the  valuation
\n\t      date.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It  was\t clear\tfrom  this  definition\tthat  any  property,
\nwherever  located,  “belonging\tto”  the  assessee  on\t the
\nrelevant  valuation  date  would be includable\tin  the\t net
\nwealth\tof  the\t assessee  assessable  to  wealth  tax.\t  An
\nargument was advanced on behalf of the trustees that  assets
\nheld by a trustee in the trust for others could not be\tsaid
\nto be assets “belonging to” the trustee so as to be included
\nin  his\t net  wealth.\tThe assets  so\theld  were  not\t the
\ntrustee’s  property  in\t any  real  sense.   They  were\t the
\nproperty of the beneficiaries and the beneficiaries were the
\ntrue owners.  The trustee could not, therefore, be  assessed
\nto wealth tax in respect of the trust properties
\n4  (1977) 3 SCC 362  1977 SCC (Tax) 457 : (1977) 108 ITR 555
\n321<\/span>
\nunder Section 3. It was for this reason, went the  argument,
\nthat  special  provision had to be made in  Section  21\t for
\nassessing  the trustee and hence assessment on\tthe  trustee
\ncould\tonly  be  made\tin  accordance\twith  such   special
\nprovision.   Prima facie, this Court observed, there  seemed
\nto be force in the argument but it was not thought necessary
\nto express any final opinion since there was an\t alternative
\nargument  advanced on behalf of the assessee which  left  no
\nroom  for doubt.  For this purpose it was assumed  that\t the
\ntrustee\t of  a trust could be assessable in respect  of\t the
\ntrust  properties  under Section 3 even in  the\t absence  of
\nSection 21.  But Section 3 imposed the charge of wealth\t tax
\nsubject\t to the other provisions of the Act and these  other
\nprovisions  included Section 21.  Section 3 was,  therefore,
\nmade  expressly\t subject to Section 21 and had to  yield  to
\nthat  section insofar as the latter made  special  provision
\nfor the assessment of a trustee of a trust.  Section 21\t was
\nmandatory in its terms.\t It was clear on a combined  reading
\nof Sections 3 and 21 that whenever assessment was made on  a
\ntrustee, it had to be made in accordance with the provisions
\nof Section 21.\tEvery case of assessment on a trustee  would
\nnecessarily  fall  under  Section 21 and  he  could  not  be
\nassessed  apart from and without reference to that  section.
\nTo  take  a contrary view, giving option to the\t Revenue  to
\nassess\tthe  trustee under Section 3 without  following\t the
\nprovisions of Section 21, would be to refuse to give  effect
\nto the words “subject to the other provisions of this Act in
\nSection\t 3”, to ignore the maxim “generalia specialibus\t non
\nderogant”  and\tto deny mandatory force and  effect  to\t the
\nprovisions  of Section 21.  The court noted that in  Nagappa
\ncase1  the  observations of Chagla, C.J., quoted  above\t had
\nbeen  approved and the court went on to state that the\tsame
\nconsideration  must apply in the interpretation\t of  Section
\n161(2).\t It had, therefore, to be held uncontrovertible that
\nwhenever a trustee was sought to be assessed that assessment
\nhad  to be made in accordance with Section 21.\tIt had\talso
\nto  be noted that the assessment which was to be made  on  a
\ntrustee\t  under\t  Section  21  was  an\t assessment   in   a
\nrepresentative\tcapacity.  It was really  the  beneficiaries
\nwho were sought to be assessed in respect of their  interest
\nin  the trust properties through the trustees.\t Section  21
\nprovided  that in respect of the trust properties held by  a
\ntrustee\t wealth\t tax could be levied upon him  in  the\tlike
\nmanner and to the same extent as it would be leviable on the
\nbeneficiary  for  whose benefit the  trust  properties\twere
\nheld.\tThis  provision\t could apply only  where  the  trust
\nproperties  were field by the trustee for the benefit  of  a
\nsingle\tbeneficiary or, where there were more  beneficiaries
\nthan one, the individual shares of the beneficiaries in\t the
\ntrust properties were determinate and known.  Where such was
\nthe  case  wealth  tax could be levied\ton  the\t trustee  in
\nrespect of the interest of any particular benefit under\t the
\ntrust  properties in the same manner and to the same  extent
\nas it would be leviable upon the beneficiary and in  respect
\nof  such interest in the trust properties the trustee  would
\nbe assessed in a representative capacity as representing the
\nbeneficiary.   This did not mean that the Revenue could\t not
\nmake  a direct assessment oil the beneficiary in respect  of
\nthe  interest ill the trust property which belonged to\thim.
\nThe beneficiary would always be
\n322<\/span>
\nassessable   in\t respect  of  his  interest  in\t the   trust
\nproperties since such interest belonged to him and the right
\nof  the Revenue to make direct assessment on him in  respect
\nof such interest stood unimpaired by the provisions enabling
\nassessment  to\tbe made on the trustee in  a  representative
\ncapacity.   Subsection\t(2)  made  this\t clear.\t  What\t was
\nimportant to note was that in either case what was taxed was
\nthe  interest  of the beneficiary in the  trust\t properties.
\nWhere the beneficiaries were more than one and their  shares
\nwere   indeterminate  or  unknown  the\ttrustee\t  would\t  be
\nassessable  in respect of their total interest in the  trust
\nproperties.  Obviously in such a case it was not possible to
\nmake  direct assessment on the beneficiaries in\t respect  of
\ntheir interest in the trust properties because their  shares
\nwere  indeterminate  or\t unknown  and that  is\twhy  it\t was
\nprovided that the assessment could be made on the trustee as
\nif the beneficiaries for whose benefit the trust  properties
\nwere  held were an individual.\tThe beneficial interest\t was
\ntreated as if it belonged to one individual beneficiary\t and
\nassessment was made on the trustee in the same manner and to
\nthe  same  extent  as it would be  made\t on  such  fictional
\nbeneficiary.   In  this\t case  too  it\twas  the  beneficial
\ninterest  which was assessed to wealth tax in the  hands  of
\nthe trustee.\n<\/p>\n
15.It  may be added that this Court in the case of CWT\tv.
\nKripashankar Dayashanker Worah5 has held that Section  21(1)
\nof the Wealth Tax Act, 1957, was analogous to Section 41 (1)
\nof the 1922 Act, the only difference being that whereas\t the
\nformer\tdealt with assets the latter dealt with income\tand,
\nsubject\t  to  this  difference,\t the  two  provisions\twere
\nidentically  worded.   Hence, the decisions  rendered  under
\nSection 41(1) of the 1922 Act had a bearingupon\t       the
\ninterpretation of Section 21 (1) of the Wealth Tax Act.\n<\/p>\n
16.Mr  Salve  drew our attention to the judgment  of  this
\nCourt in CWT v. ArvindNarottam6\t where\tthe  trust   deed
\nprovided for payment to the beneficiary of a minimum sum and
\nleft it to the discretion of the trustees whether or not any
\nfurther\t distribution of income should be made.\t There\twere
\nsimilar\t provisions in relation to the corpus of the  trust.
\nThe court held that only the minimum guaranteed income could
\nbe  said  to  be the property of the  beneficiary.   On\t the
\ndistribution  of the accumulated balance at the end  of\t the
\nstipulated period, there was no right in the beneficiary  to
\nreceive\t any  part thereof; it was open to the\ttrustees  to
\nignore\thim altogether and they could pay it to\t such  other
\nmembers\t of  the family as they chose.\tIt  was,  therefore,
\nheld that it was only the capitalised value of the  interest
\nof the assessee that had to be included in his net wealth.\n<\/p>\n
17.Both\t sides cited some English decisions but we do  not
\nthink it profitable to refer to them for what we are  really
\nconcerned  with\t is  the  interpretation  of  the   language
\nemployed in the relevant provisions of the Act.\n<\/p>\n
18.As  the judgments of this Court referred to\tabove  lay
\ndown,  a representative assessee may be assessed in  respect
\nof income received by him as such and tax recovered from him
\nthereon only under and in the
\n5 (1971) 2 SCC 570: (1971) 81 ITR 763
\n6 (1988) 4 SCC 11 3 : 1988 SCC (Tax) 477
\n323<\/span>
\nmanner\tprovided  by the provisions in the  statute  dealing
\nwith representative assessees.\tA trustee may, therefore, be
\nassessed  in  respect  of the income of the  trust  and\t tax
\nrecovered  from\t him thereon only under and  in\t the  manner
\nprovided  by Sections 160 to 166 of the Act.   The  question
\nthen is : Is the trustee of a discretionary trust liable  to
\nbe  taxed  in  respect of the income of the  trust  and\t tax
\nrecovered  from him thereon by reason of the  provisions  of
\nSection\t 164  alone or has Section 164 to be read  with\t the
\nother  provisions  dealing  with  representative  assessees,
\nviz., Sections 160 to 163 and 165 and 166?  In other  words,
\nis,  as\t Mr Salve contended, Section 164 a  code  in  itself
\ndealing with all matters relating to a discretionary trust?\n<\/p>\n
19.To  begin  with, the trustee even  of  a  discretionary
\ntrust  is,  by\treason\tof  the\t terms\tof  Section  160,  a
\nrepresentative\tassessee.   Section  161 (1)  sets  out\t the
\nliability  of  a representative assessee.   Its\t first\tpart
\nmakes him subject, as regards the income in respect of which
\nhe  is\ta  representative  assessee,  to  the  same  duties,
\nresponsibilities  and  liabilities  as if  the\tincome\twere
\nincome\treceived  by  or accruing to or\t in  favour  of\t him
\nbeneficially, and he is made liable to assessment in his own
\nname in respect thereof.  The second part affords protection
\nto   the  representative  assessee;  it\t states\t that\tsuch
\nassessment  shall be deemed to be made upon him only in\t his
\nrepresentative capacity and also that tax may be levied upon
\nand  recovered from him only in like manner and to the\tsame
\nextent as it would be leviable upon and recoverable from the
\nperson\trepresented  by\t him.\tSection\t 161(2)\t gives\t the
\nrepresentative\tassessee a further measure of protection  by
\nmaking\tit  explicit that “he shall not in respect  of\tthat
\nincome be assessed under any other provisions of this  Act”.
\nThis  is of significance for “any other provisions  of\tthis
\nAct”  must plainly mean any provision of the Act other\tthan
\nSection 161.\n<\/p>\n
20.Section 164 states that where any income in respect\tof
\nwhich a trustee is liable as representative assessee is\t not
\nspecifically receivable on behalf or for the benefit of\t any
\none person or where the individual shares of the persons  on
\nwhose  behalf  or  for whose benefit  such  income  or\tpart
\nthereof\t is  receivable are indeterminate  or  unknown,\t tax
\nshall be charged as if such income were the total income  of
\nan  association\t of  persons or where such  income  or\tpart
\nthereof\t is actually received by a beneficiary, then at\t the
\nrate  applicable to the total income of the  beneficiary  if
\nsuch course benefits the Revenue.  Put differently,  Section
\n164  states  that tax shall be levied upon the income  of  a
\ndiscretionary  trust  as if it were the total income  of  an
\nassociation  of persons, except that if it or part of it  is
\nactually  received  by a beneficiary it or that part  of  it
\nbecomes\t chargeable  to tax at the rate\t applicable  to\t the
\ntotal income of the beneficiary if that course is beneficial
\nto the Revenue.\t Section 164 does not create a charge on the
\nincome of a discretionary trust.  The word ” charged” in the
\ncontext\t in  which  it is used in  Section  164\t means\tonly
\n“levied”.   Section  164  does not make\t the  trustee  of  a
\ndiscretionary trust liable to assessment or the recovery  of
\ntax  on the income of the trust.  Section 164 harks back  to
\nSection\t 161  when  it\trefers\tto  “persons…\t liable\t  as
\nrepresentative\tassessees”.  It is Section  161,  therefore,
\nwhich  has  to\tbe  read  to make  the\ttrustee\t even  of  a
\ndiscretionary trust liable to assessment and
\n324<\/span>
\nrecovery  of  tax on income received by him  as\t a  trustee.
\nFurther,  Section  161, as pointed out above,  protects\t the
\nrepresentative assessee by stating that assessment upon\t him
\nshall  be deemed to be only in his representative  capacity,
\nby mandating that tax can be levied upon and recovered\tfrom
\nhim  only in like manner and to the same extent as it  would
\nbe leviable upon and recoverable from the person represented
\nby him and by stating that he may not be assessed under\t any
\nother provisions of the Act.  Section 164 does not give\t any
\nof these protections, as, clearly, they must be given to all
\nrepresentative assessees.\n<\/p>\n
21.The liability of a trustee of a discretionary trust\tto
\nbe assessed to tax in respect of its income and to  recovery
\nthereof is created by Section 161 and it also states that he
\nis not liable to such assessment under any other  provisions
\nof the Act.  Section 164 set out only how such tax shall  be
\ncharged\t when  the income is not distributed  and  when\t the
\nincome is distributed.\n<\/p>\n
22.It  does appear, therefore, that Section 164 cannot\tbe
\nread as being a code in itself applicable to the taxation of
\nthe  income  of\t a discretionary  trust.   Consequently,  it
\ncannot\tbe  held  that the beneficiary\tof  a  discretionary
\ntrust,\teven  he has received its income in  the  accounting
\nyear,  cannot be taxed thereon because Section 164 does\t not
\nprovide\t for  such contingency.\t  The  principle  contention
\nraised\tby  Mr\tSalve  on  behalf  of  the  assessee   must,
\naccordingly, be rejected.\n<\/p>\n
23.Why,\t then,\tshould the beneficiary\tof  a  discretionary
\ntrust  stand  on  a  footing  different\t from  that  of\t the
\nbeneficiary  of\t a  specific trust?  It\t is  true  that\t the
\nlanguage  of Section 166 does not avail the Revenue  because
\nit  states that Sections 160 to 165 do not  prevent  “either
\nthe  direct assessment of the person on whose behalf or\t for
\nwhose  benefit income therein referred to is receivable,  or
\nthe recovery from such person of the tax payable in  respect
\nof such income”.  The section is clearly clarificatory.\t  It
\ndoes  not empower any assessment or recovery by itself.\t  It
\nonly makes it clear that Sections 160 to 165 do not bar\t the
\ndirect assessment of the person on whose behalf or for whose
\nbenefit\t the income is receivable or the recovery from\tsuch
\nperson\tof  the\t tax  payable  thereon,\t provided  that\t  is
\npermissible under any other provisions of the Act.  Even so,
\nsince the word used in Section 166 is “receivable” it cannot
\napply  to a discretionary trust for it cannot be  said\tthat
\nthe   income  thereon  is  “receivable”\t for  one  or\tmore
\nbeneficiaries,\tit  being  left to  the\t discretion  of\t the
\ntrustees whether or not the income should be distributed  to
\none or more of the beneficiaries or not at all.\t But that is
\nnot  to say that the beneficiary of a  discretionary  trust,
\nbecause\t he does not fall within the ambit of  Section\t166,
\nmay  not  be assessed upon income received by  him  and\t tax
\nrecovered from him thereon if that is permissible under\t any
\nother provisions of the Act for, as aforestated, Section 166
\nis  merely clarificatory.  Section 5 of the Act defines\t the
\ntotal income of any person to include income received by him
\nor received on his behalf or which accrues or arises to him.
\nA person may be directly assessed in respect of such income.
\nThe  income  of a discretionary trust which  is\t within\t the
\naccounting
\n325<\/span>
\nyear  distributed to and received by the beneficiary  would,
\ntherefore,  be\tsubject to assessment in his hands  and\t tax
\nthereon\t would be recoverable from him.\t Such  income  would
\nsquarely  fall within the broad sweep of total income  under
\nSection 5 and the beneficiary would be liable to  assessment
\nand recovery of tax thereon under Section 4.\n<\/p>\n
24.In Nagappa case’ this was clearly stated.  It was  said
\nthat it was implicit in the terms of Section 161(1) that the
\nIncome Tax Officer could assess a representative assessee as
\nregards\t  the\tincome\tin  respect  of\t which\the   was   a
\nrepresentative assessee, but he was not bound to do so.\t  He
\ncould  assess  the  representative assessee  or\t the  person
\nrepresented by him.  It must also be remembered, as was said
\nin  the\t case  of the Nizam’s Family  Trust4,  that  when  a
\ntrustee\t is assessed to tax upon the income of the trust  it
\nis  “really the beneficiaries who are sought to be  assessed
\nin respect of their interest in the trust properties through
\nthe trustee”.  In the absence of an express provision it  is
\ndifficult to hold that the beneficiaries of a  discretionary
\ntrust  are  not liable to be assessed in  respect  of  their
\ninterest in the trust properties even when such interest  is
\nidentified in the accounting year and that the trustees\t who
\nrepresent  them\t alone\tare so liable so  that\ttax  can  be
\nrecovered only from them.\n<\/p>\n
25.We hold, accordingly, that the Revenue has the option  to
\nassess\tand  recover  tax from either the  trustees  or\t the
\nbeneficiaries  of a discretionary trust in respect  of\tsuch
\nincome\tthereof as has been distributed and received by\t the
\nbeneficiaries in the course of the accounting year.\n<\/p>\n
26.The\t appeals  are  allowed.\t  The  judgment\t (of   the
\nmajority)  under  appeal is set aside.\tThe  references\t are
\nanswered in the manner aforestated.\n<\/p>\n
27.  There shall be no order as to costs.\n<\/p>\n
326<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Supreme Court of India C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 Equivalent citations: 1994 AIR 2759, 1994 SCC (4) 308 Author: B S.P. Bench: Bharucha S.P. (J) PETITIONER: C.I.T. Vs. RESPONDENT: KAMALINI KHATAU DATE OF JUDGMENT09\/05\/1994 BENCH: BHARUCHA S.P. (J) BENCH: BHARUCHA S.P. (J) VENKATACHALLIAH, M.N.(CJ) AGRAWAL, S.C. (J) CITATION: 1994 AIR 2759 1994 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-supreme-court-of-india"],"yoast_head":"\nC.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/09\/legal-india-icon.jpg?fit=512%2C512&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Legal India Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@legaliadmin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Legal_india\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Legal India Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"41 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Legal India Admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea\"},\"headline\":\"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994\",\"datePublished\":\"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\"},\"wordCount\":8048,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Supreme Court of India\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\",\"name\":\"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/\",\"name\":\"Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\",\"description\":\"Search and read the latest judgements, orders, and rulings from the Supreme Court of India and all High Courts. A comprehensive database for lawyers, advocates, and law students.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"Free judgements of Supreme Court & High Court of India | Legal India\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\",\"alternateName\":\"Legal India\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/legal-india-icon.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/legal-india-icon.jpg\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/LegalindiaCom\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/Legal_india\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea\",\"name\":\"Legal India Admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Legal India Admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/legaliadmin\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/judgments\\\/author\\\/legal-india-admin\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","og_url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","og_site_name":"Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/","article_published_time":"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":512,"height":512,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/09\/legal-india-icon.jpg?fit=512%2C512&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Legal India Admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@legaliadmin","twitter_site":"@Legal_india","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Legal India Admin","Est. reading time":"41 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994"},"author":{"name":"Legal India Admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#\/schema\/person\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea"},"headline":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994","datePublished":"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00","dateModified":"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994"},"wordCount":8048,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Supreme Court of India"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994","name":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994 - Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#website"},"datePublished":"1994-05-08T18:30:00+00:00","dateModified":"2017-08-01T17:48:20+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/c-i-t-vs-kamalini-khatau-on-9-may-1994#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"C.I.T vs Kamalini Khatau on 9 May, 1994"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/","name":"Free Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","description":"Search and read the latest judgements, orders, and rulings from the Supreme Court of India and all High Courts. A comprehensive database for lawyers, advocates, and law students.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Free judgements of Supreme Court & High Court of India | Legal India","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#organization","name":"Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India","alternateName":"Legal India","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/09\/legal-india-icon.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/09\/legal-india-icon.jpg","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Judgements of Supreme Court & High Court | Legal India"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/","https:\/\/x.com\/Legal_india"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/#\/schema\/person\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea","name":"Legal India Admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Legal India Admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com","https:\/\/x.com\/legaliadmin"],"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/author\/legal-india-admin"}]}},"modified_by":null,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52761"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52761\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/judgments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}